title: Electronic health records: upsides, downsides, and inside-outsides on the way toward their use in clinical practice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The author reviews his personal history learning to use Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and examination room computers. He asks key questions that pertain to the use of EHRs in practice and discusses the current state of knowledge regarding EHRs and doctor-patient communication.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  He notes that--regardless of the ubiquity of computers in our society and the recognition that they are a part of current medical practice--one cannot just plop down a computer in the examination room, click "on," and anticipate that communication between doctors and patients will flow smoothly.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  He recommends the accompanying article by Duke, Frankel, and Reis (see p. 358 in this issue) as an excellent step-by-step guide for framing how to teach the basics of EHR use in clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: a Institute for Studies in History, Anthropology, and Archeology, and the Master's Program in Public Health, School of Medicine , University of El Salvador , San Salvador , El Salvador.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ventres
mesh_terms: D000739:Anecdotes as Topic; D003142:Communication; D057286:Electronic Health Records; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D010824:Physicians' Offices